Finding my Rhythm on the French Riviera

In all of the busyness of my travels and school, I have neglected to keep this blog up to date, but several big things have been taking place in my life since I wrote last.

Just three days after I returned from Scotland, I completed my first big British Studies exam and packed my bags again - this time for the south of France. Our day of travel began late that evening with an 11:20 train to London and a long (restless) night spent trying to sleep on a cold airport floor. Somehow, though, our sleep deprived bodies made it to France mid morning on that Thursday. On the bus to our hostel, we met two other travelers around our age that were also staying at Meyerbeer Beach Hostel. We instantly became friends. The two girls were from New Zealand and had just finished up their undergraduate degrees. They were currently backpacking around Europe before they began their post-graduate jobs. They offered us some great travel suggestions and we loved to hear the stories of fellow world travelers. 

As our bus made its way through the French streets, we caught our first glimpses of the Mediterranean Sea. In contrast to the grey, snowy days that we had been experiencing in Scotland and England, Nice was paradise. The sun was shining and we found ourselves shedding layers. The bus dropped us off right next to the shore on the Promenade (also known as the "English Way" since the project was commissioned by wealthy English families that spent their holidays in Nice during the second half of the 18th century). Our hotel was just two blocks away from the sea. We were enamored by the sunshine, our Kansas eyes reveling in the glory of the sea. 

As we explored the beautiful city of Nice, we found one of my favorite treasures - the fresh produce and flower market. The large market is located in Cours Saleya, right in the heart of the old town.  This was where I first fell in love with the language of French. Many of the vendors spotted us as Americans and used it to practice their English, but for the most part only French was spoken around us as shoppers and vendors exchanged goods and coins. We made several meals from this market, enjoying the fresh produce, baguettes, and relatively inexpensive prices. It was one of my favorite moments because it captured the culture of France, especially southern France, so well.  

We were even blessed enough to witness this cool street band performing as we shopped! 

The next morning was spent further exploring the city and enjoying the gorgeous pebble beach. We spent several hours that morning scouring through the rocks in search of my favorite treasure - sea glass. Ever since I visited the Outer Banks of North Carolina, I have been in love with sea glass. I am so fascinated by the colors, the small jewels of the sea that were born from brokenness. The sea glass that I would find on the French Riviera that morning, however, would hold even more significance for me as I began to try and understand my journey as a student abroad. 

Earlier that week, I had been hit hard with an aching for home. I remember feeling so frustrated with myself for feeling this way because I was traveling the world. I was seeing some of the most significant cities in history. I was experiencing rich culture and tradition. Yet I felt a sea of sadness that I could not shake. Looking out at the Mediterranean that last evening had only left me yearning for the familiarity of the Flint Hills and the beautiful barrenness of a wheat field in the winter. As I searched for sea glass that morning, I was overwhelmed by the metaphor of the transformed broken bottle. I realized that in that moment of homesickness I was a piece of sea glass. I am usually a creature of comfort. I am quick to define myself by my relationships with others. Yet there I stood on ground over 4,000 miles away from everything I had ever known. I was most certainly not comfortable. I, like the sea glass, had been broken away from everything I had ever depended on. All that I had used to define me had been smashed. I was an independent student and feeling ever so much like a broken shard of glass. In that moment though, the Lord was teaching me a beautiful lesson. He is the sea. In this season of my life, He has taken me away from every worldly thing I cling to and he has worked my brokenness within His hands. He is making in me a treasure; he is teaching me to be dependent on Him alone. 

I think that is why I am here on this adventure in this moment. I am learning to trust all while experiencing some of the most beautiful things the world can offer. None of them, however, can shine a light to the glory that is being made in me through the Creator of it all. I am reveling in the way He is hiding my life within His as I learn to cling to Him more fiercely. 

With a new perspective, I was ready to continue my trip with joyful eyes. The rest of the weekend included a lovely day trip to Monte Carlo where we all soaked up the sun and the extremely posh style of this seaside city. Our last day in France was spent cracking jokes and slipping our toes into the Mediterranean Sea. It was a perfect weekend... until our plane landed in London in the midst of a snow storm an hour and a half behind schedule. That, however, is a story for later. ;) 

The gorgeous Monte Carlo!

View from Nice on Castel Hill

Ran into a Barbara Kruger piece at the Modern Art Museum in Nice

I must conclude with this video. It seems France also gave me the answer on how to obtain a livelihood as an English/Sociology major, and that answer seems to be have wealthy friends. ;) haha 

Until My Next Adventure!

xoxox 

Edinburgh has my heart

Edinburgh, Scotland was such a beautiful place.

On Friday morning, I woke up at 6 am. With sleepy eyes I brushed my teeth. I slung my rucksack over my shoulder. I left for the station. I was bound for the land of the Scots. 

Something about a four hour train station in the morning just felt really good that day. Maybe it is my natural predisposition to appreciate the newness of the morning or the sweet time I had in solitude, but that train ride was one of my favorite memories. The train ran into some mandatory maintenance and we were stuck for about 20 minutes out in the middle of the country side. I wrote a letter and was overwhelmed by this land, the greenness of this piece of earth I am living on. It was perfect. My eyelids were heavy and I eventually let myself rest. I awoke with sleepy eyes and a mind full of quiet thoughts. I let myself day dream out the window, and then I saw it - the coast. The glorious grey waters pulsing against black rocks. The juxtaposition of green and the charcoal of the sea took my breath away. I tried to snap a picture, but it didn't dare do it justice. I kind of like that though. Knowing that a moment can never be made real behind a lens and that a second like that is only kept in you memory. A gift from God that is special for you to revel in. 

That is how Scotland greeted me. 

Our first afternoon in Scotland was a wet one. We made our way through the drizzle and found a darling restaurant called Henderson's. I could not have been more in love. Henderson's is an all vegetarian, wholefood restaurant that was founded in the 1960s by a couple that originally was just looking for a place to sell some produce from their East Lothian farm and kitchen garden. Now over fifty years later, this basement restaurant is still a pretty bustling place on a friday afternoon. I even got to try some vegetarian Haggis! 

The rest of the afternoon was spent wandering Edinburgh and getting a feel for the town. We explored Royal Mile and made our way to the castle to take pictures of the setting sun. 

That evening we enjoyed a nice discounted dinner at our hostel. They had amazing veggie burgers. I know I keep talking about food, but after living at the manor and eating potatoes every meal I get really stoked on some good veggie friendly food. Edinburgh just knew how to woo me from the beginning. 

Saturday morning began at 5 AM. We woke up before the sun, ready to tackle King Arthur's Seat. It is located in central Edinburgh, about a mile from the castle and rises over 800 feet over the city. There were several trails heading up the small mountain, and we took the one less traveled by. It lead us all the way across the face of a smaller hill near King Arthur's Seat. We felt like we were chasing the moon. Every step brought us lovely views of the city's twinkling lights below. Finally we made it right as the sun was rising over the coast. It was completely magnificent. I tasted the goodness of God. I felt so small and overwhelmed by the beauty of his presence atop of that mountain with several of my newest and dearest friends. 

The way down was much easier to tackle in the sunlight and we all felt silly from lack of sleep. Afterwards, we all enjoyed coffee together, shared stories, and heartily laughed. I really could not think of a more magnificent morning. I am so certain that I will treasure those moments of community, of silliness, and adventure until old age sets in my bones. 

Saturday was a pretty big day for tourism. We spent 3.5 hours that afternoon walking through the city in a free tour provided by New Europe. Despite temperatures and tired legs, this was probably the best tour I have ever been on, not one of us complained. In fact, I think we all left the tour with a bit of a crush on our tour guide Eoin. The tour was really personal and engaging. I learned more about the city and the history of Scotland than I could have imagined. This is what I find so engaging about studying abroad. As I walk these ancient streets, I place myself within the history. I place myself within the story. The stories of:

• Jenny Geddes, as she threw her stool at the minister in St. Giles Cathedral and started a riot in protest against Anglican Prayer books being forced into Scottish Presbyterian churches
• Medieval forms of deterrence - like nailing the ears of thieves to a place in the common square for open ridicule 
• The real William Wallace (not the Mel Gibson kind)
• Robert the Bruce
• THE STONE OF DESTINY 
• Greyfriars Bobby, the most loyal Scottish Terrier to have lived
• The covenanters that faced horrible torture in the name of their religion in Greyfriars Kirkyard 
• The graveyard that inspired JKR's Harry Potter
• Half Hangit Maggie Dickson, who survived her hanging sentence and lived for forty years after

In Edinburgh it is considered lucky to touch David Humes' toe as you walk past! 

Edinburgh's Castle - Such a beautiful sight!! 

These are just some of the stories that captured my imagination on the tour. I was completely fascinated by such a city full of tradition and history and folklore. 

Sunday took us to see Edinburgh Castle. We spent several hours touring the exhibits and museums located inside this enormous castle. Once again, I saw an extreme overlap of history in what I was learning in my courses at Harlaxton and what I was actually experiencing/touching/seeing at the castle. I fell in love with the Honors of Scotland. In this exhibit, I was able to see the crown jewels, the scepter, and the stone of destiny. This blog post is already really long, but man oh man you should really look up the story of the stone of destiny. It is a good one. My dear friend Molly always speaks about it so energetically and now I totally understand why. The guard in the room gave us several cool perspectives and discussed with us the idea of Scottish independence, a vote that is taking place in 2014. 

so thankful to be seeing the world with this sweet friend! 

Lunch was enjoyed at the Elephant House cafe, the place where JKR was said to first be inspired to write Harry Potter. The cafe was packed, and the food was delicious. Elephants of all sizes lined the walls and sat on the tables. There was a wall dedicated to articles about JKR and pictures of her writing in the cafe. We sat next to the window, and I tried to channel my inner Rowling.

  

The final time left before our train home was spent walking one last time through some of our favorite spots and seeing new sights we had missed. One of the fun places we stumbled into was a fudge shop. The sign out front said come on in, it's free and well we couldn't resist. We ended up spending forty minutes watching the man make a new batch of fudge and talk to us about his job. He even gave us a nice portion for free since we were "at the right place, at the right time." It was a super 'sweet' way to end a perfect weekend. ;)